Fable · 声匠改编 · 3:44
The Miller, His Son and the Donkey
A miller and his son take their donkey to market and change plans every time someone grumbles. The fable about trying to please everyone, retold.
Narrator
The Miller
Sam, the miller's son
Women on the road
Men on the roadOther languages · 2 languages
About this story
The Miller, His Son and the Donkey is a fable attributed to Aesop that has been retold in many versions over the centuries; it is best known from Jean de La Fontaine's Fables (1668). A miller and his son take their donkey to market and change their plan every time a passer-by finds fault, until they end up carrying the donkey. In some older tellings the donkey tumbles off a bridge and is lost; in this VoiceSmiths retelling he swims to the bank and trots home safe.
What it teaches
You can't please everyone, and if you try, you may end up pleasing no one, not even yourself. Listen politely to advice, then think for yourself and do what you believe is right.
Suits
Ages 4–9
Tips for telling it
- Each time a new passer-by speaks, pause and ask: is that person right? What will the miller do now?
- Act it out with a toy donkey: walk beside it, ride it, ride two at once, then try carrying it!
- Talk about a time someone told your child they were doing something wrong, and how they decided whether to listen.
Questions people ask
- Which fable teaches that you can't please everyone?
- The Miller, His Son and the Donkey. A miller and his son change what they are doing every time a passer-by finds fault, and end up carrying their donkey while the whole town laughs at them.
- What is the moral of The Miller, His Son and the Donkey?
- If you try to please everyone, you will please no one. The moral is often summed up as "Please all, and you will please none."
- Who wrote The Miller, His Son and the Donkey?
- The fable is attributed to Aesop and has been told in many versions; the most famous is by the French poet Jean de La Fontaine, in his Fables of 1668. This version is a VoiceSmiths retelling for children in which the donkey comes home safe.
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The Milkmaid and Her Pail
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The Frog at the Bottom of the Well
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